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Thursday, November 29, 2007

Traditional Publishing vs Entrepreneurial Publishing

I have no idea which way to go right now.

Advantages of Traditional publishers:
- handle a lot of the headache (e.g. language translation), and can get really good distrubution - if they want to. They can also help promote your book, but typically only do that for a few.
- advance (useful if you don't believe in the book's success but they do, and if you need the cash)
- looks good; credible

Disavantages of Traditional Publishers:
- low royalty (8% instead of 20%)
- might keep high control of content, packaging, title, and things like electronic rights
- might limit you putting in calls to action

Once upon a time you could either go traditional, or self publish. Seems this new breed of publisher allows you to kind of self publish, but also get distribution.....

I'll let you know what I decide.

D

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a billionaire would like to see it...

Last week I approached Steve Wynn, the man who built the Las Vegas Golden Nugget, the Mirage, the Bellagio, and the Wynn. I asked him if he'd consider endorsing the book when it comes out.

Today I got a call from his office saying no promises, but he wants to see the manuscript. Woo hoo!

If you never ask, you never know....

David

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Friday, November 23, 2007

Is it facebook time?

Wouldn't it be nice to have a LOT more interactionwith each other? With the whole R&D team?

Everyone on the team speaking their mind and supporting each other around coaching, and creating information products to automate their business?

I'm starting to get the web 2.0, online community itch.

QUESTIONS
Should SolutionBox set up a facebook group, or fan page?

Would MySpace or Ning be better?

How do you suggest we REALLY get a thriving community going on one of these online platforms?

Please post your answers here.

Thanks!


David
P.S. If you're already facebooked, you can also become a 'fan' and post on our trial page here:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=8843671549

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Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Book Introduction 2.0 (Comment Here!)

The water was hotter than I could stand. I was dipping my toe into a natural hot spring full of naked Californians, just one week into my month-around-the-world vacation. As I submerged an entire ankle in the scalding pool the thought struck me: “I don’t have to go home…..ever.”

In the flickering candle light of the cavern, I examined this ridiculous thought, and realized that amazingly, incredibly it was true. I had clothes, I had my wallet, and I had my lap top. Having converted my professional practice to an internet business, I actually didn’t have to go home……ever. Three years later, I still haven’t.


YOU HAVE SO MUCH to share.

Your life experience is valuable. Whether it's being married, or getting divorced. Whether having a child, or losing someone dear to you. Whether creating a million dollar business, or failing at three startups. Or perhaps it's simply how you got your first job or found a way to stick to your diet!

If only there was a way to share that with the world so that:

1) you could truly impact, and make a difference in, the world
2) you reached thousands or millions of people, instead of hundreds
3) you could do this from any location on the planet, creating geographical freedom.
4) you were well paid for it

And – I know this isn’t for everyone, but if you wanted to – what if you could automate it, so you can be asleep or on vacation - and still be helping the world, while your bank account goes up!

Sound impossible? Outrageous? Too good to be true? Just another ‘you can do anything book?’

Does it offend you because you believe a person should work 40-60 hours a week, 50 weeks of the year to make a living? Could you be uncomfortable with great wealth and success, however you define it? Do you hold a belief that only technical or business-minded people can do it?

Or have you sensed that this is possible for some time now? Have you always known that you have a lot to offer; that there is a group of people wanting to learn from you. Perhaps you have intuited that what you know, even what you THINK, has value. Perhaps you have glimpsed the concept of getting paid not so much for what you do, but who you ARE.

Isn't it true that you would love nothing more than to share what you know with the world, to hundreds, thousands, if not millions - if only you knew the process?

Now I’m not promising you’ll definitely make internet millions. It took hard work for me to reach the $85,000 a month I’m averaging now. And I won’t promise you a ‘four hour work week’. The author of that book and I both work way more hours than that, although it’s by choice. For many of you making a fortune and never working again are not your priorities.

But I will tell you they are both very possible outcomes of following the process outlined in this book. And if these goals seem too impossible, lofty or ‘hyped up’ to you, let’s look at some more down to earth goals that are easier to wrap the mind around:

How would your life be enhanced if you made an extra $3000 per month on the side using this book, while keeping your day job?

How would it feel to cut back to a job working only 2 or 3 days a week because your ‘how to’ CD is starting to sell really well?

What if your final result was simply having all the clients you could handle from the internet, and doubling your fees?

What would it be worth to you to transition to something you really care about, receiving 5 thank you notes a week from people you have helped?


“WHAT DO YOU DO?” people ask me, and the answer changes every time. It just doesn’t fit into what their ears are expecting:

I work from my laptop wherever I am.

I sell information products in 49 countries using the internet.

I publish an electronic newsletter, an ezine, to 70,000 solo service professionals.

I’m a speaker.

I’m a writer.

A trainer.

An internet marketer.

A traveler having fun with his friends.

A creator of information products.

But the bottom line? I share everything I learn with the people who need to hear it. I’ve created a river of information that ‘streams’ out to the world, while I’m asleep or on vacation. I’ve also set it up so that people can pay a fair exchange for the information. Apparently by magic, the solution streams from my psyche into their psyche, and a fair exchange of money streams from their wallet into my bank account. All without requiring my presence or my time.

Imagine if every time you learned to do something well, you added it to an automatic information stream. One day it’s a Top Ten List of how to improve your relationship, or you record a conversation with my partner and upload it to the web. An idea strikes you for a cool life quiz, and you have my assistant – whom you've never met – draft something for you to review on your iphone while you're spending time with friends.


Personally I think this creative energy, the process of taking your own life experiences, thoughts, and feelings and turning them into solutions for others, is the most enjoyable and interesting thing about this new lifestyle. It’s very fulfilling to get a constant stream of thank you notes from around the world.

And it’s a blast! When I found I could sound like a digeridoo (an Aboriginal musical instrument), I uploaded a silly video viewed by hundreds of people, just for fun. When Ben and Jerry’s opened a vote for which ice cream flavor would be resurrected from it’s flavor graveyard, 438 of my subscribers generally voted for Wavy Gravy – even over their own favorite flavor.

But my friends are most fascinated about my lifestyle. They constantly want to know how it is that I work from home. How is it that I can live in any country that I like? What is it about my job that let’s me play squash at 11am, have a massage at 2, and audition for a commercial for an Australian bank at 4?

They all want to know how I can surf in Australia for a month, spend 6 weeks starting a new business in the Philippines, party with 1,000 millionaires in Morocco, and when I come home my bank account is higher than it was before. What allows me to do a phone interview with an Irish radio station, have my picture in a Marie Claire ‘cuddle party’ article, and then teach squash for two weeks at a Jamaican resort? How do I have time to create new products and services for people, when most people are fighting fires in their businesses.

I started to consider a book to show people the process. When T. Harv Eker’s people asked me to speak at their Never Work Again conference, for the first time I told 1,200 people how I did it. I was surprised to see tears after the speech as people got in touch with how deeply they want to make a difference in the world, and share what they know, but also how frustrated they are in not knowing how to do it. But I realized that it was still a little confusing and daunting to people.

So at the next speech, I broke the whole procedure down into a simple 7 step process. When I offered a self study training program on how to do it, people were literally running for my booth, with one now famous woman leaping onto the table! It was now very clear that a book was needed.

Now personally, I don’t mind whether you start your own business or work for someone else. It doesn’t matter to me if you work 9-5 every day or create your own schedule. You can stay your whole life in one city, or travel the world creating solutions from an RV.

But it DOES matter to me if you are doing something you don’t love. It DOES matter to me if you are not happy, fulfilled and lit up because you’re using your creative energy; not expressing who you are; not sharing what you love with the world. It DOES matter to me of you don’t go for creating the lifestyle you dream if because you say it doesn’t exist, or you doubt your ability.

If you want a standard, traditional 9-5 job, then set this book back on the shelf; it’s not for you.

But if you want the freedom to earn money for who you are, to live where you like, to set your own schedule, and to get your time back….

Then I invite you to use the same process I did to create the lifestyle that serves you, and others.

It would be sad to me if you missed out on a lifestyle of contribution, creativity and fun, simply because you decided it wasn’t possible for you. I’d hate to think it was because your negative self talk told you: “That’s for other people. I’m not creative. I don’t know business.”

“Something new cannot enter your life, until first you create the possibility”

For years no-one broke the four minute mile because it just wasn’t possible. No-one sailed around the earth because everyone knew it was flat.

When a baby elephant is born in a circus, they tie it’s leg to a stake with a strong chain. Over time, they gradually reduce the thickness of the chain until a full grown elephant is ‘held’ by a flimsy piece of rope. It’s tied to a stake, because it believes it is.

You could say a lifestyle of abundance, contribution and freedom isn’t possible for you, or you can test the strength of your leg rope.

Create the possibility for yourself. Without knowing the steps.

I’ll show you the rest.

I will show you the 7 steps to creating a lifestyle of contribution, impact, creativity, financial freedom, and geographical freedom.

Help the world. Live anywhere. Be creative. Be wealthy. Work a lot, or a little. Be free.

In this book you will learn the 7 step process that I used to create this lifestyle, impacting over 100,000 people and funding my travels and adventures, through an automated helping-the-world-type-business. You’ll learn the same 7 step process that is now helping hundreds of people to ditch their 9 to 5 job and create the lifestyle they dream of - even if you're non-technical or doubt you have something valuable to offer.

I'll show you how to get paid for what you know and love.

I'll show you....

how to get paid for who you are.

******

Thanks for reading the draft intro! If you were going to shorten it, exactly what paragraph(s) would you take out?

Comment here.

Thanks,

David

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Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Old Introduction (comments closed - see updated intro)

INTRODUCTION

I believe people have so much to share. YOU have so much to share.

Your life experience is valuable. Whether it's being married, or getting divorced. Whether having a child, or losing someone dear to you. Whether creating a million dollar business, or failing at three startups.

If only there was a way to share that with the world so that:

1) you were well paid for it

2) you truly impact, and make a difference in, the world

3) you reach thousands or millions of people, instead of hundreds

4) you could do this from any location on the planet, creating geographical freedom, and

5) you could automate it, so you can be asleep or on vacation - and still be helping the world, while your bank account goes up!

Sound impossible? Outrageous? Have you been let down by too much 'hype' in the past? Does it offend you because you believe a person should work 40-60 hours a week, 50 weeks of the year to make a living? Could you be uncomfortable with great wealth and success, however you define it? Do you hold a belief that only technical or business-minded people can do it?

Or have you sensed that this is possible for some time now? Have you always known that you have a lot to offer; that there is a group of people wanting to learn from you. Perhaps you have intuited that what you know, even what you THINK, has value. Perhaps you have glimpsed the concept of getting paid not so much for what you do, but who you ARE.

Isn't it true that you would love nothing more than to get it out to the world, to hundreds, thousands, if not millions - if only you knew the process?

In this book I will show you the 7 steps to creating a lifestyle of contribution, impact, creativity, financial freedom, and geographical freedom.

Help the world. Live anywhere. Be creative. Be wealthy. Choose to work or not. Be free.

I'll show you the 7 step process that I used to create this lifestyle, impacting over 100,000 people and funding my travels and adventures, through an automated helping-the-world-type-business. I'll show you the same 7 step process that is now helping hundreds of people to ditch their 9 to 5 job and create the lifestyle they dream of - even if you're non-technical or time-scarce.

I'll show you how to get paid for what you know and love.

I'll show you....

how to get paid for who you are.

* * *

My question for you: If YOU were writing this introduction, what would you change? Just click here!

Thanks,

David

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Agent, and Dec 15 deadline

Even though I have 4 separate referrals now to publishers, my intuition is to go with an agent.

I've had a couple of referrals to a top, top agent, who doesn't take unsolicited proposals. I was planning just to call when the proposal was ready, but....

This morning during mediation I had the idea to get in touch now, spark some interest, fertilize the soil....

So I called the agent, and we had a 30 minute chat. Apparently she doesn't normally answer the phone, but her assistant was out today. She loved the premise of the book, gave me some advice, and said she'd love to see the proposal.

I'm very excited, and want to do nothing but focus on the proposal for the next two weeks. In the next 2 days I will finish my critical tasks, and get into full motion!

David

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Book: publishers

I had the feeling it that it would be very difficult to find a publisher. I didn't want to approach 100 and get 100 rejections - you hear about such hard slogs. And that was one of my hesitations in committing to a book.

But when I committed, I committed to having it published. And I'm very willing to self publish. After all - I'm going to be the one marketing it, and I'm the one that's going to make it a best seller. I just want a publisher for a) more credibility b) less hassle (e.g. language translations) c) wider distribution. But I'm very willing to self publish.

And interestingly, excitingly, the universe seems to be supporting this book! I 'sighted' John Gray 2 weeks ago in a hotel, one thing led to another, and he's agreed to take a look at my book and consider endorsing it. He also referred me to a top agent in the business. A good friend and author (Michael Port) offered to help me with the proposal and introduce me to his publisher (thank you so much Michael!). Another successful author offered to forward the proposal to his editor when it's ready. And on the plane back from California last week, the guy sitting next to me just landed a book deal, and referred me to his editor!

I'm excited - I'm intentional. Yay!

David

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Book: side track!

Mitch Meyerson (again thanks Michael Port for the referral) asked me to contribute a chapter to his latest Guerilla Marketing book, with foreword by Mark Victor Hansen.

Focussed as I am, I think this is too hard to pass up, so I've just written Chapter 3 - Intentionality.

Excited to see it come out, and probably hit best seller status.

It seems incredible to me that it's possible to co-author a best seller with 5 hours work!

I'll let you know details when the book's available.


David

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Book: Genesis

Tim Ferris's 4 Hour Work Week really hit me between the eyes, and I found myself wishing I had written it - or at least snagged the title!Kristina has been telling me I should write a book about how to create the lifestyle I've created, by sharing what you know and love with the world.

Speaking at the 'Never Work Again' conference by Harv Eker catapulted things when I saw the incredible response of the audience to my message.

But it wasn't until Marcia Wieder's 'Inspired Speaker's Workshop', and talking to Marcia and Michael Port that I really felt like a book was the #1 thing for me to do right now. I got pumped!

And I'm ready.

Clearing my schedule.....

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Monday, November 05, 2007

MM#86: How to Get Clients Via Alliances

1. Announcements/Offers


How Did These Coaches Set Up Their Businesses So Quickly?

You can save yourself the hundreds or thousands of dollars you may have paid a mentor coach or training school. After personally mentoring sixty coaches and founding a coach training school, I've compiled everything I know about starting a successful coaching practice in one easy-to-follow Manual.




And it's wonderful to see such huge results like this:

"I have just broken through the 50th client barrier! When I first read the Coachstart eManual, I had coached just 14 people, and thought '50 clients...no way!'. But just five months later, it's a reality! Thanks for all your help setting me up as a coach, I will always be grateful."

Daniel Midson-Short, Australia
http://www.lifestylerevolution.com.au/

“I wish I had known about the CoachStart Manual before I signed up with my training school. I could have saved myself almost £600!”

Clare Evans, UK

I 'inhaled' the manual and loved it. You give very practical advice and I particularly liked the 'sample' dialogues that a coach might have with a prospect (warm and hot invitations) and the sample script. I practice it every chance I get. Thanks for such a great and inspiring Manual!"

Midgie Thompson, UK
http://www.brightfuturescoaching.com/

So, let's get started! Get your CoachStart Manual in the next 5 minutes at http://www.coachstart.com/, and start building!


2. FEATURE: How To Get Clients Via Alliances

What happens when you make 10 calls to prospective clients? You might get two clients, right?

But what if you made 10 calls to potential alliances, made two alliances, and each alliance led to fifty new clients in the next year! Which would be the best use of your time?

In an alliance, both parties must benefit. So, the approach to potential alliances should include what you can do for them as well as what you'd like them to do for you. Make the offer appealing and easy to implement.

For example, suppose you are a masseuse and you create an alliance with a local gym. The gym hands out your "Free Reflexology with your First Massage" coupons to every new member. In return, you send out the gym's flyer with your Christmas Mailing. Everyone wins! The
customers win by being introduced to a great masseuse and gym, with free bonuses. The gym wins by getting their offer in front of your clients, who are interested in their health. And you win by gaining a steady stream of clients – all with much the same effort you would make to only gain two clients!

In the CoachStart Manual™ I detail my 5-step process to set up streams of alliance clients easily, creating a win-win situation between you and your alliances.

I'd like to give you the first three steps here in this article:

1. TARGET MARKET

After you've decided to become a Coach or other service professional, and decided whom you will serve (discussed in chapter 3 of the CoachStart Manual™), you'll need to identify specific characteristics of your target market. Write down characteristics such as income, interests, magazines they read, clubs they belong to, other types of businesses they frequent, etc. As an example, massage clients may need to have a certain level of disposable income, live in your local area, be interested in health, and more.

2. LIST PROVIDERS

Make a list of businesses who sell to your potential clients. Who already has relationships within your target market? As you brainstorm and list these providers, think about the most productive providers and those most likely to be a good match – then order your list. Here are some examples for the massage industry:

  • Gyms
  • Yoga Studios

  • Cafes

  • Book Clubs

  • Health Spas

  • Dance Schools

  • Sporting Clubs

  • Life Coaches

  • Doctors

  • Other masseuses with different styles

3. THEY SCRATCH YOUR BACK

For each potential alliance partner you've listed, jot down how they can scratch your back - what they could to promote your service. Be creative and think about how their business practices can support your goal to increase your client base. For example, they could:

  • Distribute your flyer to their new members or in their regular mailings.

  • Display a sign advertising your offer at their premises.

  • Sell your product directly. They collect the money and pass the agreed fee to you.

  • Invite you to give a free speech/seminar to their members.

  • Publish your articles in their newsletter or magazine.

  • Pay commission on sales you send them.

  • Send a special letter or email to their clients advertising your product/service

See how exciting this can be!!?

These steps get you started on your way to increasing your client base . You can make a difference to people around you, right now!

And you can set up streams of clients, instead of 'drips' of clients, right now.

Action

  1. Describe your target market.

  2. Make your list of people/businesses that are already helping your target market.

  3. Jot down what they can do for you, and what you can do for them.

  4. Plan to meet with at least one potential alliance this week either in person, by phone or email.

  5. Share your plans now, and when you have accomplished them at the blog!

***

This chapter was drawn from The CoachStart™ Manual, found together with hundreds of dollars in free bonuses, here.



Enjoy!



P.S. Got a comment on this article? Add it to the blog.